Unmanned landing sites from LRO, Surveyors, Lunas, Lunakhods and impact craters from hardware impacts Options

[dvandorn]

I figured it was time to begin a thread like this, especially since some of us may still be looking for the Surveyor III retro motor casing (assuming the bright dot to the north of the landing site isn't it).

We ought to be seeing some of the other Surveyors fairly soon, I would think. We know most of their locations pretty accurately. Again, I think there is a lot to be gained, both from scientific and engineering standpoints, from detailed imaging of the Surveyor VII landing site, just to mention one. And I really want to see how visible the Lunakhod tracks are as opposed to the MET and LRV tracks.

So... until we begin to see images of other unmanned hardware (or the craters caused by same), we could always discuss comparisons of Surveyor III surface imagery to the new LROC images of its landing site here. I'm especially taken by how you can resolve many of the blocks in Block Crater in the LROC image, which gives you a good feel for the explosive nature of the ejecta and roughly where in the ejecta plume a given block might have come from. Might be interesting/useful to apply this information to the samples taken at that location.

-the other Doug

[nprev]

It's amazing to watch how this story unfolds in the mass media. Phil, you're a long way from Hollywood, so just to save you the trip this weekend I'll drive up there, assume your identity & have you on tabloid covers & TMZ by Sunday morning. You're welcome.

On a completely different note, have any of the booster impact and/or Ranger sites been imaged at high resolution yet? Assume that the S-IVB hits might be the easiest of these to spot.

EDIT: And right after posting, I see you've found the Apollo 14 LM impact already! You're a machine, Phil; go, man, go!!!